I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to turbine wheel assemblies and, more particularly, to an indexing assembly adapted to variably adjust the pitch of the turbine blades.
II. Description of the Prior Art
In many turbine applications it is desirable to variably adjust the pitch, aerodynamic design, and/or density of the turbine blades without the necessity of manufacturing a new turbine wheel. The capability to variably adjust the above mentioned design criteria is particularly desirable in test rig applications where the optimum turbine design, blade pitch and density is initially undetermined. The cost of manufacturing a multiplicity of different turbine wheel assemblies in order to determine the optimum turbine wheel design is necessarily prohibitive particularly in view of the large number of possible permutations involved. Heretofore no adequate turbine test rig has been developed capable of quickly, inexpensively, and accurately varying either the turbine blade design, pitch or density for a turbine wheel.